Why and when does culture matter most? One of the answers to this question is: in case of mergers and acquisitions. Here's the case of one of my clients. Because they wish to remain anonymous we'll call them ET.

They rapidly acquired other companies during expansion and they understood that checking the culture around mergers and acquisitions would be crucial for success. George Gentry is head of organizational effectiveness and culture at ET's headquarters. He explains how the Competing Values Framework and the OCAI survey helped ET manage the culture part of their acquisitions.

Kanna Krishnan is a "positive agent" and holds a senior position in Human Resources. He is tasked with developing a progressive culture for BTC. That’s why he used the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) and followed the Positive Culture Academy, as explained in part 1 of this case story.

A couple of years ago, a large biotech company set up its first overseas plant in Asia where around 600 people work to date. Let’s give this real company the name BTC. Their challenge was there weren’t many skilled workers in the region. BTC hired local talent for their ability to learn and sent more than 300 employees to the “home plant” for training. In addition, they sent their best managers from home to the overseas plant to help groom the local talent.

People are wired to notice what goes wrong, what could be a threat, and what is missing. It’s what saved us during our evolution, in times of danger and scarcity. Negative comments, events, mistakes, problems and threats stand out. It’s natural, and often also reinforced by our upbringing and training.

So you think you can change? If your culture needs to change or to improve the place to start is where you are: in current culture. What is the way we do things around here? Understanding the behaviors, but also deeper beliefs and values is essential before you start any change.

What is normal in your current organizational culture? The students of the Positive Culture Academy came up with a long list of examples. Do you recognize any of these situations below?

It's great to read an adventure story, a detective, or a novel once it's summer. However, if you feel you'd like to catch up on culture, leadership, and change here's my list of favorite non-fiction books at this point.

Have you ever noticed how pilgrims mentally, spiritually and/or physically prepare themselves for a pilgrimage by engaging in some customary rituals? For example, the Muslims shave their heads, cut their nails and don white robes before going for the hajj. Similarly, the Hindus, the Buddhists and the Jains observe penance and abstain from sexual activity to purify the soul.&

A corporate CEO invited some executives to a meeting from two different levels. He asked a question and then went around the table getting input. When he got to one of the lower level executives, he said: "Sorry, I just want to hear from (the higher level) folks" and moved on.There was an embarrassed silence, and then the meeting went on. The next higher-ranked executive answered the question, and the moment passed.